Tamping-machine.



G. W. BRADLEY. TAMPING MACHINE. APPLICATION IVILBD APILZG, 1912.

Patented Jan. 27, 1914.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH co., WASHINGTON, D. C-.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

. Patented Jan. 27, 1914.

C. W. BRADLEY. TAMPING MACHINE. APPLIUATION FILED APR. 26, 1912.

a o m go 2 Q CIQLUMBXA PLANOURAPH (30 WASHINGTON. D. Q

G. W. BRADLEY. TAMPING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 26, 1912.

1,085,534.- Patented Jan. 27, 1914. 496

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

COLUMBIA P LANOGRAPH 60;. WASHINGTO I c.

' efficient mechanism for supporting all of the tnvTTnn STATES PATENT orrion.

CHARLES W. BRADLEY, OF ROCK RAPIDS,

IOWA, ASSIGNOR TO ANCHOR CONCRETE STONE COMPANY, OF ROCK RAPIDS, IOWA, A CORPORATION OF IOWA.

TAMPING-MACHINE.

AppIication filed April as,

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, CHARLES W. BRADLEY, citizen of the United States, residing at Rock Rapids, in the county of Lyon and State of Iowa, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Tamping-Ma chines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to machines for tamping concrete and other plastic material within molds for forming building blocks or bricks, and has for its object the provision of a compactly arranged, simply constructed, and efficiently operating mechanism, whereby the concrete may be rapidly tamped to. the desired density, and which will permit the removal of a filled mold and the substitution of an empty mold therefor without interrupting the operation of the machine.

More specifically, the object of the invention is to improve the construction whereby the durability and e'fliciency of the machine will be increased, to provide means whereby the impact of the actuating element with the tamping element will not cause a shock to the driving shaft, and to provide simple and tampers in an inoperative position.

All these objects, and such other objects as will incidentally appear from the following description, are attained ina machine ofthe type illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is an elevation of a tamping machine embodying my invention; Fig. 2 is a horizontal section taken in the plane of the driving shaft and looking downward; Fig. 3 is a detail view of the lower portion of the frame and the tamper. rods, showing the tampers supported inan elevated inoperative position; Fig. at is a detail view'of the tamper guides; Fig. 5 is a detail perspective view showing the means for connectingthe driving wheel with the crank shaft, the component parts of said means being separated but in their proper relative positions; Fig. 6 is a detail view of the operating devicefor actuating the means for holding the tampers in the inoperative position.

In carrying out my invention, I secure rigidly to the elevated beams, l, of any preferred fixed support, a main frame consisting of sills 2 connected by cross bars 3, said Specification of Letters Patent.

sills and cross bars being formed of angle Patented Jan. 2? 191a.

1912. Serial No. 693,364.

iron in order to combine strength and lightness. To the said sills 2, I secure the standards at of channel iron which are located to the rear of the central longitudinal plane of the main frame, and have their upper and lower ends secured to horizontal guides 5 which are preferably constructed of stout timber. These guides 5 are provided with a plurality of spaced openings through which the tamper rods extend and by which the said rods areguided.

Journal boxes 6 are rigidly secured upon the sills 2, and in the said journal boxes is mounted the driving shaft 7 having a band pulley 8 loosely mounted on one end, a belt 9 passing around said pulley to transmitmotion thereto from any convenient prime motor. Adjacent the pulley 8, 1 key or otherwise rigidly secure to the driving shaft 7 a casting or head 10 having arms 11 extending therefrom. Openings 12 are formed through the ends of these arms 11, and guide rods 13 extend loosely through the said openings and through perforated ears 14 on the ends of brackets 15 which are secured rigidly to the band pulley. Springs 16 are coiled around the guide rods 13 between the ends of the arms 11 and the lugs or ears 14, and it will be readily seen that by this construction the impact of the lifting arm against the portion of the tamper rod engaged thereby will not exert a breaking strain upon the band pulley or its connections with the drivin shaft, but the shock will be absorbed by tdie springs 16 and, at the same time, the driving force Will be effectually transmitted. 7

Between the standards or hangers 4, the driving shaft 7 is equipped with crank arms 17 rigid therewith and so arranged that each crank arm is at an angle of 90 to the adjacent crank arm. The number of crank arms will, of course, correspond to the num ber of tampers and may be more or less according to the size of the block to be formed, but ordinarily four tampers will be found sufficient, and the arrangement of the crank arms shown and specifically set forth tamper and thereby tend to overcome the liability to sudden breakage of the same.

The tampers each consist of a head 19 and a rod 20 extending upwardly therefrom, the said rods being extended through and guided by the upper and lower plates 5, as previously mentioned. The tamper heads 19 will be of such size and shape as to cover the entire surface of the concrete placed within the mold whichis indicated at 21 in Fig. 1, and each tamperrod is preferably provided with a stop 22 at its upper end, so that if the tampers should fall when the mold is not in position under the tamping apparatus, their descent will be arrested by the top plate 5 and consequently loss of the tampers or breakage of any of the parts will be prevented. V

The tampersare arranged in pairs, each pair being disposed transversely of the machine, as shown most clearly in Fig. 2. Upon the tamper rod of the forward member of each pair of tampers ,,I rigidly secure a lifter or guide 23 consisting of a web adapt,- ed to extend between the two tamper rods and secured to the forward rod by a clip 2 f, being shaped at its forward end to fit snugly around the said rod, as shown in Fig. 4. The opposite end of the Web is formed into a fork 25 which engages the rear tamper rod so as to move loosely upon the same and, at the same time, tend to preserve the alinement or relative position of the two tamper rods.

A flange 26 projects from the lower edge of the web 23 and extends into the path of the roller 18 on the adjacent crank arm, so that as the said crank arm is actuated by the rotation of the driving shaft the roller will be brought into engagement with the under face of the flange 26, and the upward stroke of the crank arm will consequently lift the guide and the tamper rod to which it is secured. The upper edge of the web 23 is preferably inclined downwardly from its front end to the fork 25 at its rear end, and above the said inclined edge is a guide or plate 27 which is formed at its front end with a fork 28 adapted to loosely engage the front tamper rod and is provided at its rear end with a grooved offset 29 adapted to fit against the rear tamper rod to which it is rigidly secured by a clip 30, as will be readily understood. By this arrangement of parts, the upward movement of the lower guide or lifter 23 will be transmitted directly to the plate 27, so that the rear tamper rod will be caused to move upwardly with the front tamper rod, and the two tamper rods will, of course, drop together, but the breaking of either rod or of the lifting element attached thereto, will not necessitate the renewal of both tamper rods or of both lifting elements. Furthermore, this arrangement permits a slight play of therods independently of each other, so that if the surface of the concrete or other plastic material poured into the mold should be uneven, there will be no torsional strain imparted to the pair of tamper rods. The lifting guides are so disposed that the distance between the heads of the rear tampers and the guides thereon is greater than the distance between the heads of the front tampers and the lifting guides on the same. As a result of this arrangement, if the surface of the material in the mold be level, the tamper heads will, of course, be in the same plane, but, if the head of a front tamper should strike an elevated portion of the surface, the head of the corresponding rear tamper will be permitted, nevertheless, to reach and act upon the lower surface, as will be readily understood. Moreover, if the surface should be level, the front tamper will be lifted slightly before the rear tamper is lifted, and consequently the shock of the impact between the roller of the crank arm and the bility of breakage reduced, or in other words, the strain upon the crank arm in the lifting stroke is initially caused by the weight of one tamper arm, and the lifting movement is started before the crank arm is subjected to the combined weight of the two tampers.

It will be readily understood that the driving shaft is arranged slightly in advance of the tamper rods and that each crank arm, at the lowest point of its movement, will pass under the flange 26 and engage the under surface of the same, so that during the upward movement of thecrank arm the tampers will be raised and as the crank arm passes beyond the highest point of its movement and starts downwardly, it will clear the said guide, so that the weight of the same, combined with the weight of the tamper rods and the tamper heads, will cause the tampers to drop and strike upon the material within the mold so as to firmly pack the same. The crank arms being arranged in the manner previously described, the tampers will drop in a regular progression upon the concrete or other material, and one or more of the tampers will always be raised from the mold, sothat the material may be poured into the same continuously.

At an intermediate point of the front tamper rods, I afiix thereto orform thereon collars or stops 31 which are formed with slight grooves or recesses, indicated at 32, in their lower ends and are adapted to be engaged by brake members, so that the tampers may all be held in their highest position where they cannot be actuated by the crank arm during the removal of one mold and the substitution of another there- ,for without requiring a stoppage of the prime motor. The brakes are arranged adlifting guide will be lessened and the lia-- jacent the pairs of tamper rods and consist of standards, each formed of a lower memher or leaf 33 and an upper member or leaf 34 hinged together at their meeting ends, as shown at 35, the lower leaves or members being hinged or pivoted upon the upper side of the lower plate 5, as shown at 36. The leaves of the brakes are preferably formed of sheet metal which is reinforced by wooden plates 37 to prevent buckling. A brake lever 38 is pivotally hung at its upper end upon the sill 2 and is pivotally connected at its lower end to a rod 39 extending through the leaves 33 near the upper ends thereof and provided with stops or collars 40 at opposite sides of and adjacent the said members 33, as shown most clearly in Fig. 1. It will be readily seen that when the brake lever 38 is swung to the left, as shown in Fig. 1, the members 33 will be swung away from the adjacent tamper rods, whereas movement in the opposite direction will move the said members toward the tamper rods, as shown in Fig. 3, and it will, of course, be understood that the said leaves or members 33 are provided with'short slots near their upper ends to accommodate the relative movement of the members and the shifting rod 39. A similar rod 41 is inserted through the upper leaves or members 34 near the upper endsof the same, and both rods 39 and 41 are projected through and supported by the hangers or standards 4. The upper rod 41 is swiveled or otherwise loosely connected to the brake lever 38, and around the said rod are coiled a plurality of springs 42 which bear against the opposite faces of the upper brake members 34 and against pins 43 inserted through the said rods or other convenient form of stops provided on the rods between the brake members.

Brackets 44 are secured to one of the hangers 4 at a point between the two shift ing rods 39 and 41, and the brake lever passes between the said brackets. Upon the brake lever is a keeper 45, and a short crank shaft 46 is journaled transversely in the said brackets 44 and has its central crankv 50 portion 47 playing between the said keeper and the brake lever. It will be readily understood that as this crank shaft is rocked by means of its handle end portions 48, the

central crank d7 of the same will bear against the brake lever or against the keeper 45 thereon, so as to vibrate the said lever and thereby shift the rods 39 and 41 to cause the brake members to engage or release the tamper rods. When the brake lever is swung to the right, as shown in Fig. 3, the upper ends of the lower brake members will move in the same direction, of course, so that the upper members will be brought into alinement with the lower members and consequently the upper ends of the upper members will be slightly elevated and will be carried into the path of the stop collars or rests 31 on the tamper rods to be engaged by the same, successively, as they tend to drop, so that this downward movement will be arrested and the tampers all held in an elevated position, as shown in said Fig. 3. When the brake lever is again swung to the left, the lower brake members will be moved to the inclined position shown in Fig. 1 and the upper brake members will then be arranged at an angle to the lower members, so that their upper extremities will be slightly lowered and the tamper rods consequently lowered sufficiently to permit the rollers 18 to engage under the respective lifting guides. The weight of the tamper rods will thus be successively taken off the brake members, and the springs bearing against the respective brake members will then at once throw the upper extremities of the same out of the paths of the several stops or collars 31, so that the tampers may then operate to compress the material in the mold. In this manner, the tampers are held against release, so that they cannot fall at a time when the respective crank arms are on the rip-strokes, so that the several crank arms and the respective lifting guides meet only at the time of proper transmission, thereby effecting easy transmission of the motion and preventing hard blows that tend to break the machine.

It will be readily seen from the foregoing description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, that I have provided a tamping machine which is supported above the mold and out of the way of the workmen, so that it will not interfere in any degree with the removal or in sertion of the mold. The machine is composed of few parts which are simple in their construction and operate directly and easily.

The support consisting of the upper and lower plates 5, the hangers 4, the sills 2, and cross bars 3 may be inclosed, if so desired, so that the flying dust will not reach the working parts and clog the operation of the same, but I have omitted the inclosing' structure as it constitutes no part of my invention and may be of any convenient form.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is 1. In a tamping machine, the combination of a frame, a tamper slidably mounted therein, a stop on said tamper, a foldable brake adjacent the tamper to engage under said stop, a shifting rod passing transversely through the lower member of the brake, stops on said rod engaging the opposite faces of the brake member, a brake lever connected to said rod, a secondrod passing transversely through the upper member of the brake, and springs coiled around the said second rod and bearing against the opposite faces of the upper brake member, the lower brake member being hinged at its lower end to the frame.

2. In a tamping machine, the combination with a supporting frame, of a tamper slidably mounted therein, a brake consisting of upper and lower hingedly connected mem bers, the lower member being hinged at its lower end to the frame and the upper member having its upper end free and adapted to engage the tamper, a shifting rod loosely connected with and passing transversely through the lower brake member, a lever mounted on the frame and pivoted to said shifting rod, a second rod passing transversely through the upper brake member and loosely connected with the said lever, and springs coiled around said second rod and bearing against the opposite faces of the upper brake member.

3. In a tamping machine, the combination with a supporting frame, of a series of tampers slidably mounted therein, brakes through the upper brake members, stops on V said rod between the brakemembers, springs on said second rod bearing against said stops and against the oppositefaces of'theupper brake members, a lever pivoted to the shifting rod and loosely connected to the second rod,a keeper secured upon the lever, and a crank shaft playing between the lever and said keeper.

In testimony whereof I aifix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES W. BRADLEY. Witnesses GEORGE Porrmeo, SIMON Frsrmn.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents.

Washington D. G. 

